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I'm 99.9% sure I have to reinstall XP home b/c a virus (or something) totally destroyed my internet connection. I've tried all methods to get rid of the virus but my int. conn. cannot be reinstalled (I'm talking about the software, not the modem- it seems fine). My files seem to be all intact and okay. Any suggesstions on how to go about the reinstall safely (i.e. not letting the virus back in), or will the reinstall take care of any viruses, etc?

If you do end up reinstalling Windows, it is a good idea to wipe out all of the data using a free program called KillDisk. It can be downloaded HERE. That should remove any traces of a virus or other malicious software that you might have on your hard drive. Another point - be careful in reinstalling your data as it may contain the virus, too. If you have more questions or problems with reinstalling, feel free to ask them here at Bleeping Computer!

I doubt that a repair install will rid you of any viruses. And a clean install will require reinstalling everything. Before you try that, have you tried to run LSP fix? It will repair your winsock and restore connectivity in many cases. LSP fix

Sigh... I tried the winsock fix: didn't work. So, I'm about to ask a question so stupid that I can't even believe I'm going to ask it, but here goes. (Well, an explanation first, then the question).

I didn't have a WinXP CD when I bought my PC b/c XP came preinstalled. So, I called the store where I bought it and long story short, the tech guy gave me a burned copy of an "XP Recovery" CD for free (on the sly, of course, b/c their policy required me to bring the PC in and have them do it for 50 bucks). He said that this CD will reinstall XP after I've formatted my drive.

Okay, now it's time for the stupid question. What exactly am I supposed to do with this CD? I've tried placing it in the machine and starting it up, and nothing happens. I've tried running it once I've logged in, and nothing happens. I've opened the CD and there's tons of files, but nothing I've clicked on starts anything. There's an Autorun notepad file, which says "Open=explorer". I ran that command under the "run" function, and it just takes me to the windows explorer file. The other issue might be that I have an external CD/DVD drive on my PC b/c the CD drive my PC came with hasn't worked properly in a long time, would that be causing problems? (The external drive is fine and the PC reads discs just fine).

Actually, I just thought of stupid question #2: am I supposed to format the hard drive myself before I run the CD? If so, how am I supposed to do that?